NEW YORK–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Today, Blockgraph, an industry initiative spearheaded to date by
FreeWheel, A Comcast Company (Nasdaq: CMCSA), in partnership with industry
partners, released a new whitepaper entitled Building the Future
of Data Driven TV: The Quest to Create a Safe Identity Layer for the
Industry.

The paper offers practical advice for companies moving towards the
data-driven future and explores the current approaches for data sharing
in the TV industry. The publication also presents the findings from a
new research survey of over 150 advertisers and agencies, commissioned
from Advertiser Perceptions, on the challenges, opportunities and
importance of bringing advanced data to television advertising.

According to the survey, the mean percentage of advertisers’ total TV
spend that is data-enabled (using data to improve planning, targeting
and/or analyze attribution) has grown at a 42% three-year compound
annual growth rate. Moreover, it appears that data-enabled TV growth is
about to accelerate in 2020, as evidenced by these key findings from the
whitepaper below:

2018: 20% TV spend data-enabled

2019: 29% TV spend data-enabled

2020: 40% TV spend expected to be data-enabled

Yet historically, the TV advertising ecosystem has faced a number of
challenges, as substantiated by the survey:

Identity Resolution (Low Match Rates) in The New TV Ecosystem:
An increase in content options and distribution channels makes it
difficult to build a 360-degree view of an advertiser’s targeted
audience. Among advertisers, over one-third (36%) said identity
resolution was one of the top three barriers preventing them from
using data to build audience profiles; only 20% said that they could
“easily develop a 360-degree view” of their audience.

Industry Dynamics in the Media Supply Chain: Audience
relationships and advertising rights are split between a number of
distributors and content owners, creating a complex ecosystem of data
ownership and sharing. Our survey indicated that 54% of advertisers
were concerned about competitive leaks when sharing information with
media partners (even via a trusted third-party provider), and only 5%
had no concerns about sharing data with media partners.

Privacy, Compliance and Data Security: This supply chain
complexity places greater demands on companies to ensure consumer
privacy and data security. Among advertisers, 79% said protecting
consumer privacy was a top concern in 2019, up 10% over 2018.

Data Matching and Operational Inefficiencies: As mentioned
above, data matching is facilitated by trusted third-party providers
outside of the supply chain; however, operational and coordination
challenges can make this process inefficient in terms of turnaround
time and expenses. In fact, 38% of advertisers cited this as a
top-three barrier preventing them from using data to build audience
segments for TV.

“The findings confirmed that advertisers are eager to bring additional
data to TV, similar to their use of data in digital media. Yet, there is
also the recognition that TV is different,” said Jason Manningham,
General Manager, Blockgraph. “So, while they are bringing more data to
TV, the growth, albeit strong, is actually tempered a bit by today’s
challenges.”

“At Blockgraph, we spend our days helping the TV industry realize its
full data-driven potential. Chief among our objectives is making data
both easy to use by marketers and safe for data owners and their
audiences,” he added. “But it’s always helpful to understand how
advertisers are thinking about data holistically, and the challenges
that they are facing when it comes to data-driven TV. That was the
impetus for our research.”

The whitepaper explains how Blockgraph creates industry-wide value in The
New TV ecosystem by addressing many of the key challenges of data
sharing and identity resolution. By connecting data across the entire TV
ecosystem while protecting data ownership and safeguarding consumers’
privacy, Blockgraph will enable TV to pair its exceptional ability to
reach and engage mass audiences efficiently, with the breadth and depth
of data insights necessary for robust data-driven TV planning,
execution, measurement and attribution.

“Considering that data is the cornerstone to almost all of the
innovation that will make TV a smarter, more efficient, more effective
advertising vehicle, we need to solve the sizable challenges that still
surround data sharing and activation,” said Dave Clark, General Manager,
FreeWheel. “What’s so exciting is that when I talk to clients, and hear
their challenges and concerns around data, I know that FreeWheel is
uniquely positioned to collaboratively provide solutions on behalf of
the entire TV ecosystem. Our Blockgraph initiative offers both an
example of our collaborative approach, and a path that can accelerate
the growth trajectory of data-driven TV advertising. And it’s here.”

Blockgraph is an industry initiative focused on creating a more secure
way to use data and share information. It is designed to become an
“identity layer” for the TV industry, providing a platform on which
media companies and publishers can offer marketers best-in-class data
capabilities without disclosing identifiable user data to third parties.
For more information on Blockgraph, or to find out how you can
participate, please visit: www.blockgraph.co.

About FreeWheel

FreeWheel, A Comcast Company, empowers all segments of The New TV
Ecosystem. We are structured to provide the full breadth of solutions
the advertising industry needs to achieve their goals. We provide the
technology, data enablement and convergent marketplaces required to
ensure buyers and sellers can transact across all screens, across all
data types, and all sales channels, in order to ensure the ultimate goal
– results for marketers.

With offices in New York, San Francisco, Chicago, London, Paris, Beijing
and across the globe, FreeWheel, A Comcast Company, stands to advocate
for the entire industry through the FreeWheel Council for Premium Video.
For more information, please visit www.freewheel.tv,
and follow us on Twitter and LinkedIn.

About Advertiser Perceptions

Advertiser Perceptions is the global leader in research-based business
intelligence for the advertising industry. Our exclusive insights,
practical advice and knowledgeable guidance produce actionable solutions
that deliver results and enable our clients to thrive in today’s complex
and competitive advertising market. For more information about our
services or to arrange a private briefing, please contact us at
212-626-6683 or info@AdvertiserPerceptions.com.